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A few years back we asked the question: “Can coach training organizations continue to offer hundreds of different programs, many developed and offered with limited oversight or field testing?”.   So far, the answer appears to be ‘yes’.

Every new industry takes time to settle. In the auto industry, history tells us that there were thousands of companies turning out cars. Most of them, you have never even heard of.  Even now, as the field has narrowed to a dozen major players, there are still small, specialty automakers in the US and around the world.

Just a couple of decades ago, the computer industry was a free-for-all. Every manufacturer had its own operating system. Programs written for one brand wouldn’t run on another.  That state of affairs has changed, with just a handful of platforms and programming languages dominating.

In both industries, the free flow of information created healthy competition, and innovators were able to break into the game even after established players had emerged.
 
In coaching, we can expect the same. Peer Resources*, a leading source of information on coaching and mentoring, lists over 300 currently active training programs for life, business and executive coaches. The International Coach Federation (ICF)  lists dozens of coach training programs for executive coaches that feature live training and dozens more with ‘distance learning’ options. In addition to the ICF, the Worldwide Association of Business Coaches (WABC) and the International Association for Coaching (IAC), along with quite a few other bodies, have established themselves as accrediting bodies for coach training. 

* www.peer.ca. Membership optional, but recommended.

One question that has been posed in coaching communities: Who accredits the accreditors? What external authority designated any of these coaching associations as qualified to make judgments about private, for-profit coach training schools? Apparently, none of the trade associations is subject to independent review of their decision making processes. They may or may not be qualified to pass judgment. Once they do, what happens? There has never been a report of a coaching school losing their approval based on an audit.

Private schools are one thing. Do universities fare any better? Aren’t all universities accredited? Pretty much so, but that doesn’t necessarily mean their coach training programs are. Universities can bypass formal review and accreditation by offering non-credit programs.

Further blurring the lines, a handful of  colleges and universities have opted for a trade association’s accreditation.

Three hundred coaching schools. Considering the total number of coaches entering the industry each year, a few thousand at best, there is not enough business to sustain any more than a fraction of the training programs currently on the market.  Preliminary research indicates that as many as 10% of coach training programs go out of business each year.  Dominant players will emerge. Lesser lights will fade. 

Why do we say that lesser lights will fade?  Not every coach training program seems destined to have universal appeal. Take a look at a few business models for coach training, and let us know what you think:

• An executive coach training program with a somewhat redundant message: “based on mindfulness, sustainability, intercultural and global skills, systems theory, neuroscience, mindfulness, and sustainability.” (Website abandoned)

• Or, the quick fix: Become a Certified Professional Life Coach in Just 16 hours.

Private training programs have been around for fifteen years. University-based training has been around for just half that time. University training is becoming the standard for large companies and internal coaches. Almost half of all internal executive coaches are university trained, vs. 20% for external coaches. Internal coaches attend programs that feature more time with a live instructor, as well.

This information comes from the seventh annual Sherpa Executive Coaching Survey.
The most current research is available at www.sherpacoaching.com/survey.html

This is one of a series of web pages designed to offer additional topics and commentary, beyond the basic report.

Media contact: For exclusive material and interviews: Karl Corbett, Managing Partner, Sherpa Coaching LLC, (513) 232-0002 USA,  kc@sherpacoaching.com

For a library of 60-second videos about executive coaching, visit http://www.youtube.com/user/sherpacoaching.